In third place – and measured for the first time, specifically – were \u201cnews articles [online or hard copy]\u201d at 53%.<\/p>\n
The number of New Zealanders, meanwhile, watching subscription-video-on-demand \u2013 for example, Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime, Apple and Neon \u2013 fell to 50%, the lowest percentage since 2020. <\/p>\n
In 2023, that number sat at 57% and in 2024 it was 56%.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany New Zealanders remain conscious of discretionary spending,\u201d the survey says. <\/p>\n
\u201cAs media subscriptions become increasingly fragmented, audiences are making more deliberate choices about which services they keep and use regularly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Netflix, HBO Max, Amazon Prime, Disney+ and Neon are all battling for viewers’ eyeballs – and credit cards. Photo \/ Getty <\/p>\n
The total number of minutes people spend watching subscription streaming services has also declined \u2013 down to a total of 80 minutes per day, compared with 89 minutes in 2024.<\/p>\n
But the heaviest users of subscription services are still loyal and watching more minutes than two years ago. <\/p>\n
\u201cRather than abandoning these services entirely, New Zealanders appear to be prioritising the subscriptions they value most,\u201d the survey says.<\/p>\n
When the free TV-watching percentages are broken down, linear TV, specifically, edged out streaming services for the first time in five years.<\/p>\n
NZ on Air chief executive Cameron Harland. Photo \/ NZ on Air<\/p>\n
NZ on Air chief executive Cameron Harland said the growth of linear TV was heartening.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis has also coincided with a fall in viewing on Netflix, Amazon Prime and Disney+, which, taken together, may be an indication of audiences realising they can get great content for free on local platforms.\u201d <\/p>\n
The survey reveals the daily reach for broadcasters by brand \u2013 TVNZ increased to 53% (up from 48%), YouTube increased to 52% (up from 47%), Netflix dropped to 36% (from 38%), Facebook for video dropped to 33% (from 36%), Three increased to 25% (from 24%) and Sky TV dropped to 21% (from 25%).<\/p>\n
The research \u2013 the survey was taken between April 8 and May 7 \u2013 also reveals a decline for another global platform, Spotify. <\/p>\n
In 2024, 35% of respondents said they used it; this year that number sits at 27%.<\/p>\n
Overall, music streaming fell from a reach of 49% in 2024 to 44%, while podcasts lifted slightly, from 18% to 19%.<\/p>\n
\u201cSocial media, RNZ, NZ Herald and Stuff are increasingly mentioned as ways listeners find new podcasts, pointing to a broader discovery mix than in 2024, where a smaller share of the audience are now finding new podcasts on Spotify,\u201d the survey says.<\/p>\n
It said age remained one of the strongest influences on media behaviour. <\/p>\n
\u201cYounger audiences gravitate towards streaming, gaming and social discovery, while older audiences remain more connected to television, radio and established discovery channels.\u201d<\/p>\n
Overall, NZ on Air says that after a decade of rapid change driven by streaming, online video and digital audio, patterns of media use are becoming more settled. <\/p>\n
\u201cEstablished and emerging platforms increasingly coexist rather than replace one another.\u201d<\/p>\n
It also said New Zealanders were now navigating a media landscape spanning local and global services, free and subscription platforms, broadcast and on-demand content, and increasingly personalised discovery pathways. <\/p>\n
TVNZ and two of its best-known broadcasters, Tova O’Brien and Melissa Stokes.<\/p>\n
Online video<\/p>\n
Elsewhere in the survey results, online video has grown four percentage points \u2013 up to 24% daily reach, compared with 20% in 2024, the last time the survey was conducted.<\/p>\n
The NZ Herald, which has introduced new morning business and news shows hosted by Garth Bray and Ryan Bridge, has now overtaken Stuff as the most popular site for online video news.<\/p>\n
The Herald was up three percentage points to 13% compared with 12% for Stuff. TVNZ\u2019s 1 News came next (8%) followed by RNZ (6%) and Three News (2%).<\/p>\n
NZ content<\/p>\n
The survey highlights people\u2019s perception of New Zealand content.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost New Zealanders believe NZ music matches international quality, while many also see NZ shows as comparable to overseas content. Both NZ music and NZ shows are strongly associated with national pride,\u201d the survey says.<\/p>\n
It adds: \u201cPeople who engage with both NZ and global content are often most positive about NZ shows.\u201d <\/p>\n
Harland also said: \u201cIt\u2019s heartening to see that 37% of New Zealanders actively seek out local music, and 41% would listen to more of it, if it was promoted on streaming platforms. There is no lack of love for local music \u2013 we just need to help audiences find it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Editor-at-Large Shayne Currie is one of New Zealand\u2019s most experienced senior journalists and media leaders. He has held executive and senior editorial roles at NZME including Managing Editor, NZ Herald Editor and Herald on Sunday Editor and has a small shareholding in NZME.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In third place – and measured for the first time, specifically – were \u201cnews articles [online or hard…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":565194,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[68,192,128118,1863,107122,156,121897,2936,807,1073,111,139,69,6662,90,1355,3291,62639,8822,73393,223,61,664,437,540,4276],"class_list":["post-565293","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-air","tag-are","tag-audiences","tag-back","tag-bounces","tag-entertainment","tag-freetoair","tag-insider","tag-kiwis","tag-media","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-off","tag-on","tag-starting","tag-streaming","tag-subscription","tag-survey","tag-tap","tag-the","tag-to","tag-turn","tag-tv","tag-where","tag-why"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/565293","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=565293"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/565293\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/565194"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=565293"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=565293"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=565293"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}